My son plays for NZ - in New Plymouth!

[Stickchick]

Awesome Col!!!! Give Jeff a hug from me!!! See ya sometime this weekend

[mtroskill]

6'3 and playing prop aye... Carl Haymann v2.0??

[HTFU]

6'3 and playing prop aye... Carl Haymann v2.0??

Yeah I was thinking the same. No longer the days of short fattys filling the front row.

Man Mountains ready to unleash terror on each others ligaments and tendons .

[nadroj]

Any know the final score & stats?

[nadroj]

New Zealand suffered a rare loss in a trans-Tasman secondary schools rugby match against Australia in New Plymouth today.


Their 11-15 defeat marked the first occasion New Zealand have lost to Australia in New Zealand since the countries first met at schools level in 1978.

New Zealand have won 19 of the 26 matches played, and today's setback followed a loss in Sydney last year.

Australia led 8-3 at halftime and eventually scored two tries to one, New Zealand's sole five-pointer coming from Blade Thomson, of Gisborne Boys' High School.

[sels1]

Bugger......hope that dosent transfer to Bledisloe Cup results in a few years time!

[Colapop]

I suppose a match/trip report is in order.
I got up early on Friday and got myself sorted. Hit the road by 6:45 and tootles off to get gas. I would have loved to take the bike but it's still in bits on the floor of the gargre. Beautiful day for riding it was too!! Not to worry.. wandered off into the sun feeling pretty good and relaxed. Nothing eventful on the trip north except for the nice policeman who turned around and stopped me on the advice of a truckie that I passed. Had a nice chat to the officer about the sunny day and it being weather for rugby. I thanked him for his time and tootled off further north.
I hadn't told the boy I was going up (he'd been away for 3 weeks already) so when he saw me and his face lit up it made the trip worthwhile right there.
The game itself was a very evenly matched afair with the NZ team scoring first. In the first 20 (35 minute halves) the NZers looked to have the wood on the Aussies and it was really only a fortuitous try that saw them leading into the break. A couple of substitutions early in the second spell saw a little cohesion go out of the NZ side with the Australians taking advantage of a couple of fresh players and scoring a beatufully worked try up the sideline with the winger scoring in the corner. NZ came back and scored one of their own but despite being hard on attack in the final 10 minutes the clock ran out and the win went to the Aussies.

It's hard to describe the pride you feel when you see your son standing out there singing the national anthem as part of an international representative fixture. He looked up into the stands and gave me a nod before they went to do the haka and that for me was a special moment. (I know he nodded to me coz I asked him later if he'd seen me - the stands weren't full) That was one of the best games I've ever seen him play. He was dynamic around the park and totally dominated his opposite (prop.) My hope for him now is that he goes on with things and is able to realise his dreams of representing NZ at a higher level.

Oh, and then I drove home.

[vifferman]

Good stuff, Col!

[Dooly]

Has he been signed to a provincial rugby academy or anything yet Col?

[Colapop]

Yep. He's signed to WRFU Academy til the end of next year...

[Fatjim]

congrats to the 'Apop family. I feel sorry for the skinny white bastards who are going to have to tackle this young fella.

[Dooly]

Yep. He's signed to WRFU Academy til the end of next year...

Good. Make sure he sticks it out, chances like that are hard to come by.
My stepson was signed to the HB union at 17, made a NZ lower team, had interest from Gloucestor in England, and gave it all away for pussy..............
Now he's labouring................